Ok so this week I have been rekindling my love affair with the elixir of life, the cheese toastie.
So far I've had ham, cheese and pickle. Cheese, salami and rhubarb chutney. And then cheese and rhubarb chutney. All were obviously sublime.
I'll admit it. I'm tempted to try a cheese ham and pineapple. Madame made a face, but I reckon it would be lush.
Anyway, as I am sans sandwich toaster, I am doing them in a frypan with leftover bacon fat or butter.
My construction methods always seem a bit clunky, and I'm never sure if I should butter the outside, or butter the pan. Butter then inside, or go filling and chutney only.
Hit me with your top tips!!
mayonnaise on the outside of the bread is my tip
Cheese and baked beans. Add a little splash of brown sauce if you must.
Or cheese and sliced pickled onions.
Whenever we have a lunch out and return home a) well fed and b) thinking we might like something later in front of the TV, the usual answer is toasted cheese sandwich.
Since we got an air fryer our game has gone up a further notch (not that we thought it possible).
Nice bread, typically co-op round loaf, butter on the inside, cheddar, sliced onion, sliced gherkin, and ideally pimento pepper from a jar. Stick a cocktail stick to stop the top blowing off. A few minutes on high and the perfect toastie. Open up when finished for a splash of brown sauce. Maybe with some crisps and a glass or two of red wine.
The last time we planned this was while we were on (a) dessert course of the 7 course lunch at Manor de Quat' Saisons for our significant anniversary. Didn't begrudge a penny of the £620 it cost, and it rounded off a perfect day. (Food wise obviously)
Slice of cheddar, coleslaw (or beetroot or both) ham, then slice of emmental on top.
Corned beef, decent cheddar or red leicester, some form of spicy chutney (eg Aldi Chilli jam)
Can you clarify your air fryer technique? It's ages since I've had a toastie as my kitchen is too small for a specific toastie maker 😕
Butter bread (outside)
Griddle pan.
Mayonnaise can be added on the up/in side while the outside cooks.
Load the cheese up and assemble.
Various acceptable accompaniments but pineapple is not one of them as I keep reminding my youngest who can ruin a perfectly good pizza with it 🤮
- Ham
- Salami
- Pickle/chutney
- Jalapenos (complement sandwich pickle very well).
- Sweet chilli sauce (expecting abuse now 😂)
- Beans if you've got one of them 1980s toasty maker things
- Left over chilli? 🤔
Coleslaw should only go next to them not in them.
Air fryer?? Ye gads id never thought of that.
Maybe I'm dumb but how does the bottom of a toastie get toasted in an air fryer? I've never used one, as may be obvious
In answer to vlad, make a cheese sandwich, with your choice of filling (I showed mine, toastie version, onion and salad cream for ambient) put a cocktail stick in and put in the air fryer till it looks toasted.
And my comment about the lunch: we've never had a tasting menu when we didn't get hungrier as the meal went on, and we've not regretted it.
Beans if you've got one of them 1980s toasty maker things
Ohh yes, the original Breville - scalding hot beans jettisoning into your mouth. Ohh, for my youth back 🙂
Its not a toastie unless it comes out of a toastie maker.
Place suitably square bread in base of toastie. Press bread down to create dish in bread. Crack an egg into the dip. Season with whatever, kimchi is a good adition. Place bread in top bit and press up to create dish. Close the lot carefully you need to try and get the lot shut before the egg exlodes.
Cook for an amount of time aim for longer to start you don't get a do over.
Eventually you can get a runny egg toastie.
I was looking at the black pudding in the fridge but couldn't decide if it would heat through enough during the toasting process
Toasts (not white bread).
Sardine (not the one with tomatoes sauce)
Cucumber slices (pickled is alright too)
Pickled chilli pieces Not whole (not birds eye chilli coz that will burn)
Add a few drop of the pickled sauce
A dash of light soy sauce if you wish
Can add a bit of mayonnaise if you wish but half a tea spoon is enough
Put them together and cut sandwich into half size, then eat.
couldn't decide if it would heat through enough during the toasting process
Cook open. Black pudding on top. Put two halves together after cooking. Cheese tastes better grilled that way anyway.
Butter (or mayo) on the outside, leave the inside for just the filling.
I cook them on a nicely seasoned De Buyer carbon steel pan for just under 2 minutes each side. I put a piece of greaseproof paper on top followed by a small cast iron skillet while it's cooking too give it a gentle squeeze.
Maybe I'm dumb but how does the bottom of a toastie get toasted in an air fryer? I've never used one, as may be obvious
It's a fair question. I take out the grill so the toastie is directly on the bottom of the pan and preheat first.
Maybe you don't even call it air frying done that way, as you're just frying the base same as on a pan, but at least the top gets browned too so no need to turn it over.
I'm tempted to try a cheese ham and pineapple. Madame made a face, but I reckon it would be lush.
Don’t do it. I tried once. Even the tiniest bite lead to boiling pineapple juice (much thinner than bean juice so it gets hotter, and is runnier) all over my chin, had a mark for ages, couldn’t tell you how it tasted either on account of my tastebuds being removed…
Now I’ve got that out the way.
Butter outside of bread
Nduja and cheap mozzarella, with a couple of basil leaves inside, maybe a sun-dried tomato or two.
Proper toastie maker.
Panini press.
Open fire, ideally outside.
Sourdough, buttered on outside.
Cheeses, hams, chorizo, any meat of choice.
jalopenos
more jalops
Cook until glass like crust on bread, slice and burn mouth.
Got to be Warburtons Toastie bread, loads of butter, corned beef doused in Worcester sauce - it soaks it up like a sponge - mature cheddar or red Leicester and thinly sliced onions
The king of cheese toasties!
Salter toastie maker for the toasting
This does not compute. The previous epic STW toastie thread was dominated by people being won over to the bizarre sounding, but crazy good cheddar + peanut butter + sriracha combo, and it hadn’t even been mentioned yet!
Yeah keep it simple... Cheese, finely sliced onion, and a dash of chilli sauce or a sprinkle of chill flakes.
Two slices of bread. Slice of cheese. Bacon. Black pepper. Microwave to 50 degrees C. Butter the outside of the bread. Fry in cast iron pan until golden.
Almost every office kitchen in Australia i've worked in has a sandwich toaster. I typically keep it simple... but peanut butter and sliced banana with some honey is good.
Panini press.
Open fire, ideally outside.
Sourdough, buttered on outside.
Cheeses, hams, chorizo, any meat of choice.
jalopenosmore jalops
Cook until glass like crust on bread, slice and burn mouth.
Not a toastie.
For speed and convenience.
Toast two slices of bread.
Bit of spread.
Slice some cheese. Add other ingredients if required.
Microwave for 30 seconds. Adjust for your microwave power.
= Toastie.
Job, Jobed.
See other thread-
Butter the outside
Kimcheese (cheddar and kimchi)
Corned beef and Branston (on the side if you don't want to burn your mouth)
Haggis
Absolutely covered the inside and outside of the bread in butter - and the bread should be medium thick at least.
Tuna, mayo, chopped onion, grated apple and plenty grated cheese - and some Worcester sauce and salt/pepper to season.
Mix that all up so it is properly mixed and make sure there is plenty of cheese throughout.
Put a nice thick spread of the mix between the bits of bread and toast.
If you want to be properly posh looking, add some cheese on top of the creation before toasting.
Key question is: are you using the triangle of sadness maker? Or a flat-surfaced panini maker? Still can't work out the air fryer approach myself; I'm on the panini maker, or under the grill.
Bread, sliced reasonably thin, not usual doorstep thickness. Shmear with Aldi chili paste in a jar; can also add tomato puree, thin layer. Thick chunks of cheddar across surface, splash of worcestershire sauce; can also add sliced chorizo. No butter on the outside.
However, if you're using the triangle type: cheap white sliced bread, buttered on the outside, banana sliced lengthways, mars bar slices. Lock closed, cook.
And I cannot state this enough: allow to cool, it will give you third degree burns, while also being the tastiest thing you ever ate.
Butter
Cheese
Marmite
All you need really. (Bread too obvs)
Xmas recipe:
butter the bread
add the vintage cheddar
open a mince pie
place pie on cheese
thump
seal the sarnie and cook.
Enjoy your festive treat
BTW, if any of you don't have access to a sandwich toaster, these toaster pockets are a pretty good substitute.
I've not had a toastie for years but used to love cheese, tomato ketchup and sliced tinned hot dog sausages as a kid 😀
Seriously, am I the only person to add sliced mushroom?
Mushroom cheese and ham, with black pepper and whatever form of spiciness is available.
Key question is: are you using the triangle of sadness maker? Or a flat-surfaced panini maker?
Flat sandwich toasters are better, those triangle ones are poor in comparison, more squashed bread than contents. Apparently using folded grease proof paper can help you make less of a mess too
Not sure if this is technically a toastie, but it's amazing and you don't need a toastie maker or panini press...
-Make some macaroni cheese (preferably McIntosh of Strathmore, but Kraft Mondelez Cheesy Pasta works)
-Mix up some honey and chilli flakes
-Very lightly toast Waburtons Toastie White in the toaster or under the grill
-Put macaroni cheese on bread and cover in the honey chilli mix
-Warm up a little bit of oil in the frying pan and fry both sides of the toastie until golden
You can almost feel your life getting shorter as you eat it, but it's 100% worth it.
Flat sandwich toasters are better, those triangle ones are poor in comparison, more squashed bread than contents. Apparently using folded grease proof paper can help you make less of a mess too
Disagree. You end up with two lices of toast that slide apart . The triangle of joy seal the pocket in and lend themselves to "filling" which gives you a waaaay better filling ratio. Admittedly a standard cheese ends up a pit hollow but when you add extras there is space for them. Like a breakfast burroastie or a Calzoastie.
And anything that require paper is just a wasteful nonsense.
I'm using a frypan method, with leftover fat in it to add flavour.
When we had a pile of shite Rayburn, it's only Forte was the double hot plate lids that slammed down like a boss on your toastie. Man that was the biggest, most expensive panini maker know to mankind
With my new found knowledge I've today added sliced pickles, properly slathered the butter and adjusted my heat levels. Major improvement. Also spicy rhubarb chutney is the dogs
-Make some macaroni cheese (preferably McIntosh of Strathmore, but Kraft Mondelez Cheesy Pasta works)
-Mix up some honey and chilli flakes
-Very lightly toast Waburtons Toastie White in the toaster or under the grill
-Put macaroni cheese on bread and cover in the honey chilli mix
-Warm up a little bit of oil in the frying pan and fry both sides of the toastie until goldenEat it.
FTFY
-Make some macaroni cheese (preferably McIntosh of Strathmore, but Kraft Mondelez Cheesy Pasta works)
-Mix up some honey and chilli flakes
-Very lightly toast Waburtons Toastie White in the toaster or under the grill
-Put macaroni cheese on bread and cover in the honey chilli mix
-Warm up a little bit of oil in the frying pan and fry both sides of the toastie until goldenEat it.
FTFY
That too, but the thread isn't just about making and eating food 😋
My "Toasties" are a winner in our household, but they're more of a fried sandwich TBH.
Assembly order (note no butter in the actual sandwich)
-Bread
-Pastrami
-Cheddar (fine grated)
-Sliced Gherkin (although I like pickled beetroot in mine)
-Dirty 'merica style mustard
-Bread
Butter in pan on higher heat slap toastie down on melted butter and burn one side while buttering the top side, then flip it over and do the other side.
Put on plate, repeat for next "customer" (family members that apparently can't operate a kitchen for themselves)
But I'm now intrigued by the Air fryer option, I am a general devotee of the airfryer now, the pan gets used for toasties because I long ago learned that toastie makers are a faff and actually a bit crap for making toasties, but if the airfryer can deliver the same results I'm in.
Key question is: are you using the triangle of sadness maker? Or a flat-surfaced panini maker?
I'm a 'two table naan breads in the hotel trouser' press kind of a guy
As a frying pan based toasty theres a gorgeous one made after spotting it on the menu of a French restaurant once - a variation a croque monsieur I suppose. Reads like all the wrongs but its super delicious
Beat an egg and pour it onto a plate
Dip one side of bread into the egg then place eggy side down in pan
then add - gruyere cheese, nice ham, slices of banana and creme fraische - other slice of bread eggy side up and flip the whole thing over
It so nice I hardly ever get it onto a plate - just eat it standing in front of the cooker out of the pan
Brie or camembert, maybe Munster, with mango chutney and rocket.
In a pan, griddle or not: triangle makers are catastrophically flawed. Nowhere for the steam to go, so the pressure builds and forces your cheese out the sides.
Cheesy counter top, hot toast pocket full of wet air. Sad face. Burnt mouth optional.
Stilton and peanut butter is the best
Apart from The Stabilser's remarkably hardcore recipe of 'Mustard' most of these are cheese based.
What good cheese-less recipes are there?
What good cheese-less recipes are there?
Why would you want a toastie with no cheese, you twisted deviant?!!!
I’m with Stevie G on this one…
I use all kinds of leftovers - bolognaise, chilli...
The best though has to have been boeuf bourguignon...with cheese, of course...
Stilton and peanut butter is the best
Yeah, for attracting a pine marten into your garden
That George Foreman Grill lurking unused at the back of the cupboard can be pressed into service as an excellent toastie toaster.
That George Foreman Grill lurking unused at the back of the cupboard can be pressed into service as an excellent toastie toaster.
Once more with feeling.
No It Can't.
A squashed sandwich is not a toastie hot or otherwise.
Requires a proper toastie maker that will seal the edges.
Butter 'outside' of bread (white).
Big spoonful of mincemeat.
Toast.
Sprinkle with sugar.
'Instant' mince pie. Awesome.
Try that with a panini press!
I notice that lidls is doing a tikka flavoured homous.
goes well on toast with a very small pot of pineapple chunks.